The difference between corned beef and pastrami

When you go into any American deli, you're likely to find many
of the same deli products, with a few regional specialties thrown
into the mix. Among the staples you will usually find corned beef
or pastrami. Most people use the two interchangeably, but they are
different products. Indexed magazine Food and Wine
explains the difference between the two, as well as how
they differ from Canadian smoked meat.

Like most cured meat products, both corned beef and pastrami are
imports into the U.S., the former from Ireland and the latter from
Romania and Turkey. Corned beef is made from brisket, and begins
its journey to your plate by resting in a flavorful brine
traditionally seasoned with black pepper, cloves, bay
leaves, dill and juniper berries. After its brine bath,
corned beef is boiled to finish cooking.

Pastrami, on the other hand, gets smoked at the end of its
curing period. It shares many of the same flavorings as corned
beef, which lends to the confusion between the two products. While
it is often made from brisket, the traditional cut is beef navel,
which resides near the brisket but is denser and more fatty, making
the end result richer than corned beef.

Montreal smoked meat falls somewhere between the two. It's a
smoked meat and shares a lot of flavoring with its southern
pastrami neighbor, but contains less sugar. Like pastrami, it is
usually served on rye bread with mustard.